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Your Gig $ - Who Gets It?
- Thread starter jaywa
- Start date
if I get paid in cash at the end of the night, then I usually fill up the tank, pick up a 6 pack and a pizza, and the rest goes into an envelope at home.
When I need gear, or anything else band related, I pull from there. was gettin pretty fat for a while there until I bought the B15R.
If we get paid with a check, I deposit it into my account, pay my guys, and use the rest to pay the credit card with which I use for my small record label. But since my record label puts out my bands' records, then it is a wash.
When I need gear, or anything else band related, I pull from there. was gettin pretty fat for a while there until I bought the B15R.
If we get paid with a check, I deposit it into my account, pay my guys, and use the rest to pay the credit card with which I use for my small record label. But since my record label puts out my bands' records, then it is a wash.
My Bank of America band fund credit card gets it all! Plus, any I can sneak out of our joint checking account....but don't tell my wife!
dcr
dcr
Calebmundy
Supporting Member
- Apr 5, 2007
- 1,133
- 811
- Disclosures
- Endorsing Artist: DNA Amplifiers, Lākland Basses
Single, but 90% full time musician. Gig money pays my bills a little late. Very occasionally buys some small gear items-has never seen a gear purchase over $500. Feeds me.
It either goes into the band fund for gear or merch or I keep it and spend it on my own gear. It's totally separate and apart from my household money and my woman. Although I did use some of it to take her to The Deftones concert a few months back.
I take out what I need and the rest goes in the kitty. It usually works out to a 20 / 80 split over the year, 20 to me, 80 to the house.
Cash: put gas in the truck, kick a little out to help buy [DEL]popsicles[/DEL] groceries, pay for consumables like picks, strings & power amps.
Toss some into the Kontingency Kitty for repairs/upgrades/replacements.
Checks: usually a little more than bar gigs. I pay my 'share' of the utilities, pick up stuff for the remodeling projects here that haven't stopped in 30 freakin' years.
If it's been a good month, take Wife of Nojj out to do something special, or get her a new appliance.
Always make sure she knows the band paid for it.
If I want a shiny new toy, I better have had a helluva good year,
or start selling some of the other toys.
Toss some into the Kontingency Kitty for repairs/upgrades/replacements.
Checks: usually a little more than bar gigs. I pay my 'share' of the utilities, pick up stuff for the remodeling projects here that haven't stopped in 30 freakin' years.
If it's been a good month, take Wife of Nojj out to do something special, or get her a new appliance.
Always make sure she knows the band paid for it.
If I want a shiny new toy, I better have had a helluva good year,
or start selling some of the other toys.
My wife is cool. We have an understanding that money I make playing music goes back into music. Doesn't matter if its pay from a gig or money from selling gear. In my band we generally split all the door money and a small part of the merch money. The other part of the merch money goes into buying new merch and saving for studio time. If we're planning on going to the studio and we don't have the money in the band account we'll start taking less and sometimes no money from shows in order to pay studio costs.
my missis has a small shop here in southern spain. i help in the shop because she has MS. when i have a gig i have to pay somebody to help out in the shop so i pay with my gig money. with juice for the van and the help payment i just about break even but playing gigs is my only break from what is basicaly a 24 hour a day job. without playing i think i would loose it. i keep a tight control on GASSING but i do give into it sometimes and try to buy stuff that lasts( mesa cabs, GK amps,flats) my missis is the braveist person i know and dont even think about not giving up the gig money. playing is worth every penny( euro)
It all goes into a large jar tucked away at the end of one of our kitchen counters. I'm planning to use that money for my next bass purchase but it's not off limits for some quick fun money. For example, we have a local water park just a couple of minutes away that we took the kids to the other day. It was $16 for the 4 of us to get in so I just grabbed a $20 bill from the jar to cover it. But for the most part the cash just keeps getting loaded up in it.
It really all depends. I don't even think about it. Let's see..... last few gigs.
$300 - put it in my wife's pocket at the end of the night because my wallet was in the truck. Haven't see it since. (I probably need to check the dirty clothes basket.....)
$250 - Gave it to a poor young kid who was playing with me that night. He's in college and broke. Told him to gas up his car, buy a new battery for it, and spend the rest on total fun (no bills).
$225 - Stuck it in my wallet. Just counted. $217 of it is still there.
$250 - Paid the babysitter and paid for dinner before the show for me and the wife (along with a few drinks during the night). Picked up some groceries the nest day with the change.
I guess it all depends. But my wife plenty of her own money and doesn't need my gig money. So I am never required to hand it over.
$300 - put it in my wife's pocket at the end of the night because my wallet was in the truck. Haven't see it since. (I probably need to check the dirty clothes basket.....)
$250 - Gave it to a poor young kid who was playing with me that night. He's in college and broke. Told him to gas up his car, buy a new battery for it, and spend the rest on total fun (no bills).
$225 - Stuck it in my wallet. Just counted. $217 of it is still there.
$250 - Paid the babysitter and paid for dinner before the show for me and the wife (along with a few drinks during the night). Picked up some groceries the nest day with the change.
I guess it all depends. But my wife plenty of her own money and doesn't need my gig money. So I am never required to hand it over.
I do this and every time i get withing 20-50 dollars of my goal some emergency happens and it gets spent on bills or something.
We have a slush fund for short trips, restaurants, etc. That's where mine goes. Our day jobs cover the day to day expenses and investments. My music money, and my wife's bonuses are for the fun fund.
Here's what I slowly figured out. When I keep it for myself, the VISA bill seems to be higher. When I hand my wife some cash, the VISA bill seems to be lower. I like lower VISA bills, so I give her some gig cash from time to time.
Last year I bought a bunch of gear, so almost all of my gig money went to gear. I don't see myself spending much on gear in the near future, so the VISA bill should be nice and low for a while. Unfortunately, I needed a new car, so...
Either way, The Man wants my money!
On a side note: According to my accountant, the IRS has been looking at musicians and the money they make. I've recently heard stories of the IRS going to the clubs and finding out who gets paid, how much, who's in the band and then going after those band members. I make sure I keep track of my earnings and music expenses. I claim my earnings and musical expenses at the end of the year.
Last year I bought a bunch of gear, so almost all of my gig money went to gear. I don't see myself spending much on gear in the near future, so the VISA bill should be nice and low for a while. Unfortunately, I needed a new car, so...
Either way, The Man wants my money!
On a side note: According to my accountant, the IRS has been looking at musicians and the money they make. I've recently heard stories of the IRS going to the clubs and finding out who gets paid, how much, who's in the band and then going after those band members. I make sure I keep track of my earnings and music expenses. I claim my earnings and musical expenses at the end of the year.
